Here's how you can balance conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals.

Balancing conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals is a common challenge for any team. In my opinion, the solution has two parts, and interestingly, the first part is more difficult than the second, which is prioritization. The first part is identifying and associating user value with IT project stories. Every business story comes with an inherent user value. If we can apply the same approach to IT project stories, it becomes much easier to prioritize them alongside business goals. By establishing clear user value for IT initiatives, we create a natural alignment that facilitates balanced prioritization.

To identify if an IT project is siloed from business goals check for the following: 1. Is there at least one business stakeholder aligned to the project? 2. Do the business stakeholder(s) have time from their roles to participate in key status and decision meetings? 3. Have business requirements been documented and did they original from business input? 4. Is there a definition of done for the project which is the goal to achieve to measure the project a success?

Very often IT implementations really disguised Business optimization projects. Leadership believes that through implementing a system, Business processes will automatically standardize themselves. Ensuring that the goals, outcomes and expectations of Business stakeholders are properly aligned will often lead to removal of the conflict between Business goals and IT goals. Eventually, the continued improvement of the Business as a whole is a joint goal. Finding that joint interest is the key to success!

Ao meu ver, este alinhamento não deve ser feito posteriormente ao negócio definir seus objetivos. Mas sim juntos, ao mesmo tempo. Se os objetivos de negócios forem definidos junto com TI, não precisa de desgastes e alinhamentos posteriores. Pensem nisso.

To balance conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals, start by ensuring a clear understanding of both sides. Engage in regular communication with business stakeholders to understand their strategic objectives. Prioritize IT projects that align closely with these goals and deliver the highest value. Use a project management framework to assess the impact, urgency, and benefits of each project. Implement a flexible approach, allowing adjustments as business needs evolve. This balance ensures IT initiatives support overall business success and strategic alignment. ⚖️ #ITManagement #StrategicAlignment #ProjectPrioritization

Prioritizing wisely helps balance conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals by aligning resources and efforts with strategic objectives. For example, using a framework like the Eisenhower Matrix, you can categorize tasks by urgency and importance, ensuring critical business goals receive immediate attention. At companies like Microsoft, prioritizing projects that drive revenue or enhance customer experience ensures alignment with business objectives. Regularly communicating with stakeholders to understand their priorities and adjusting IT project timelines accordingly helps maintain this balance. Effective prioritization ensures that both IT and business goals are met efficiently and strategically.

Baseado de que TI agora já faz parte do negócio, as metas estarão priorizadas juntas. Quem dirá até mesmo compartilhando da mesma estrutura de gestão de projetos para empresa como um todo.

It's very important and critical to always prioritize these IT projects and to keep track. Creating goals or projects without properly tracking them is no good. Tracking those projects and also accountability is just as important. This will ensure that these goals/projects are always being worked on until they are full complete.

Uma das práticas para priorizar passa por técnicas como o GUT: G - GRAVIDADE do problema a ser tratado U - URGÊNCIA requerida para aquele tema T - TENDÊNCIA o que determina o quanto aquele problema ou oportunidade deverá se modificar nos próximos ciclos Para ajudar, vale graduar de 1 a 5 cada item, multiplicando para ter um RANKING. Por exemplo: se todos forem conceituados como 5, teremos um 5x5x5 = 125

prioritizing wisely helps balance conflicting demands by evaluating projects based on business impact, urgency, and resource availability. By systematically assessing each initiative's alignment with strategic goals, potential ROI, and risk factors, you can make informed decisions that optimize IT efforts and support critical business objectives.

Comunicação é tudo. Sempre foi. “Quem não se comunica se instrumbica”…rsrsrs Então planejar a comunicação ajuda demais. Estabelecer a periodicidade, o meio de comunicação e as pessoas envolvidas. Básico bem feito funciona demais.

Reuniões Regulares: Realize reuniões regulares entre as equipes de TI e negócios para revisar prioridades, atualizar status dos projetos e resolver conflitos. Relatórios de Progresso: Mantenha todos informados sobre o progresso dos projetos e quaisquer desafios ou mudanças.

Another critical point is communication. We all know that this is were most companies struggle with. And the bigger the company, the more difficult it is to communicate with the rest of the stakeholders. I would recommend a collaboration software and ensure that all stakeholders have access and visibilty to the projects, everyday if possible. Now a days, there are so many software to achieve this. But at times, it's not about having the right piece of software but it's about creating that culture or that behavior and make sure people look at the project status everyday. If people can look at the status of the projects everyday, it will be easier for them to collaborate when working on these projects.

clear communication is crucial for balancing priorities. By articulating the impact, trade-offs, and benefits of IT projects to stakeholders, you foster understanding and alignment. This transparency helps in negotiating resources, managing expectations, and ensuring that both IT initiatives and business goals are given appropriate consideration and support

In situations where business stakeholders rely on a finite set of IT staff to deliver their objectives via agile methodology, it helps to bring the stakeholders in the same demand planning meeting to review the backlog and discuss the priority of the items to go into the next sprint. This communication expands the perspectives of the stakeholders to see each others' objectives and often negotiate with each other on setting the optimal priority for the overall business.

Managing resources effectively helps balance conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals by optimizing the use of time, budget, and personnel. For example, at a company like Amazon, allocating more developers to a high-priority project ensures it meets tight deadlines while still progressing lower-priority tasks. Implementing tools like resource management software can track and allocate resources efficiently, preventing overallocation. Regularly reviewing resource allocation and adjusting as needed based on project progress and business priorities ensures that critical business goals are achieved without neglecting important IT projects, maintaining a harmonious balance.

Assim como o negócio é vivo e tem que se adaptar as necessidades de mercado, políticas, ameaças de concorrentes e por aí vai, na TI é a mesma coisa. Gerenciar recursos de forma a se adaptar a estas mudanças.

Once the project or goal is created, in my opinion, during the creation of the project, this is when you set resources, bugets, etc. All the requirements in order to complete the project. While the project is underway, it's always very important to keep tracking of these resources. Making sure you staying within the requirements the was set in the beginning.

Alocar recursos é uma arte, em especial em projetos ágeis. Assim é importante verificar qual é o foco prioritário a ser respondido naquela pergunta de negócios de um projeto (por exemplo) e entender em cada fase (sprint no método ágil) como os recursos (principalmente humanos) serão divididos em equipes

effective resource management is key to balancing priorities. By strategically allocating personnel, budget, and technology across projects, you can optimize output and meet diverse business needs. This approach ensures critical initiatives receive necessary support while maintaining flexibility to address emerging priorities and long-term strategic goals

Monitoring progress helps balance conflicting priorities between IT projects and business goals by providing real-time insights into project status and resource allocation. For example, using project management tools like Jira or Trello, teams at companies like Atlassian can track milestones, deadlines, and task completion. Regular progress reviews and status reports highlight potential delays or resource bottlenecks, allowing timely adjustments. This continuous oversight ensures that high-priority business goals are met without derailing IT projects. By keeping a close eye on progress, you can ensure that both IT and business objectives are achieved efficiently and effectively.

This goes back to I just said, it's very important to always monitor the progress. This will ensure that you don't have any surprises. It will be much easier to react and to come up with alternatives when things are not working out. Additionally, it's important to also set milestones. This will ensure that you're going in the right direction. It always helps the team and let's them know that they are moving towards the end goal and completion.

monitoring progress helps balance priorities by providing real-time insights into project performance and business impact. Regular tracking allows for timely adjustments, resource reallocation, and reprioritization. This data-driven approach ensures IT efforts remain aligned with evolving business goals, maximizing value and minimizing conflicts between competing priorities

Estou na mesma empresa há 18 anos, destes passei 8 anos na TI. Uma bagagem importante para entender bem como pensa o lado técnico. Atualmente estou do outro lado, no negócio da organização, com seus desafios que mudam frequentemente. Fato é que se as regras e o atendimento de TI restringirem demais o processo, o negócio fará de outro jeito, que pode inclusive não ser o melhor! Obtive sucesso sempre que literalmente vivi a dor do negócio e, portanto, sendo parte dele, foi mais fácil entregar a solução! Este é o caminho!

Revisões Periódicas: Faça revisões periódicas das prioridades e adapte os planos conforme necessário para refletir mudanças no ambiente de negócios ou novas informações. Gerenciamento de Mudanças: Estabeleça um processo claro para gerenciar mudanças nas prioridades e garantir que elas sejam comunicadas e implementadas de forma eficaz.

Ao implementar essas estratégias, é possível criar um ambiente onde as prioridades de TI e negócios estejam melhor alinhadas, permitindo que ambos os lados trabalhem de forma coesa em direção aos objetivos comuns.

Balancing IT projects and business goals is tough but doable. It’s all about clear communication and prioritizing what matters most. First, make sure IT and business teams talk regularly. This helps everyone understand each other's needs and challenges. Next, focus on projects that align with business goals and provide the most value. Lastly, be flexible. Sometimes, you have to adjust plans as new information comes in. Balancing these priorities requires teamwork, understanding, and a willingness to adapt. It’s not easy, but with the right approach, it’s possible to meet both IT and business objectives successfully.